A few days later, inside Aizen's secret base.
Hasumi Ren stood before the laboratory table. In front of him lay the core matrix for the Garganta technique—optimized by Urahara and further refined by Tsukabishi Tessai.
He lightly ran his fingertips over the matrix, checking the status of every spiritual pressure node.
When Aizen pushed the door open and walked in, Ren had just completed the final adjustments.
"How is the progress?"
Ren turned around. "The formula structure is complete. We can begin live testing."
Aizen walked over to the table, picked up the Garganta proposal, and flipped through a few pages. His gaze lingered on Ren's face for a moment. "As the person in charge of this project, how much of this proposal do you actually understand?"
Ren pondered for a moment. "Most of it."
Aizen's brow twitched slightly. He knew the core of this blueprint came from Kisuke Urahara, and that Ren shouldn't have had the technical capacity to resolve issues of this scale on his own. Ren was supposed to be nothing more than a courier, obtaining the plans from Urahara just to present them here. Yet now, Ren claimed to understand most of it, which came as a slight surprise.
"Then explain to me, what is the core principle behind a Garganta?"
Ren stepped to the table, picked up a blank matrix slate, and sketched a few lines on it. "The essence of a Garganta lies in using a Hollow's spiritual pressure to simulate a spatial tear. When a Hollow opens a Garganta, its spiritual pressure hits a critical threshold. At that exact point, the spatial barrier collapses naturally. What we need to do is use a Soul Reaper's formula to anchor that critical threshold, making the tearing process controllable."
His fingertip tapped several nodes on the matrix.
"The difficulty lies in the fact that a Soul Reaper's spiritual pressure differs fundamentally from a Hollow's. Simulating a Hollow's spiritual pressure with a Soul Reaper's requires a highly complex conversion formula. To circumvent this, I found a shortcut. By utilizing the Hollowified spiritual pressure within my own body as a guide, I can directly tear open the Garganta."
Aizen listened. Though his expression barely changed, his gaze grew significantly sharper. "A shortcut... Can you actually pull it off?"
Ren looked up, meeting his eyes. "I can."
Aizen fell silent for a brief moment. Then, he nodded. "Demonstrate."
Taking a deep breath, Ren stepped into the open space at the center of the laboratory. The formula matrix and spiritual pressure anchors had already been set up there, with the surrounding area intentionally cleared to leave ample room for testing.
He closed his eyes and catalyzed the Hollowified spiritual pressure within him.
Dark red spiritual pressure surged from his body, coalescing around him before creeping over his face. A bony mask materialized out of thin air. Under Ren's deliberate control, it formed to cover only half of his face.
Aizen stood to the side, fixing his eyes on Ren, watching silently.
A moment later, Ren raised his hand. Hollowified spiritual pressure gathered at his fingertips, swirling naturally. Then, he began to trace the formula.
His fingers swept through the air, leaving behind trails of dark red spiritual pressure. The lines interwoven and overlapped in midair, forming an intricate formula structure.
Aizen's eyes narrowed slightly. This was far from a mere robotic recitation of a blueprint. As Ren traced the lines, he micro-adjusted the positions and intensity of the nodes based on real-time feedback from the spiritual pressure. He truly understood the underlying principles of the formula, which allowed him to adapt it on the fly with such flexibility.
As the spatial anchoring formula gradually took shape, Ren raised his other hand. Using both hands simultaneously, he maneuvered the spiritual pressure trails, guiding them into a single, centralized node.
The Hollowified spiritual pressure erupted violently at the nexus. The tempestuous force tore at the fabric of space, causing a visible distortion in the air. Then, a pitch-black rift slowly cleaved open.
A Garganta.
The initially volatile spatial tear gradually expanded into a half-meter-tall, miniature Garganta, stabilized under the precise equilibrium of Ren's spiritual pressure. Its inner walls shimmered with the bizarre, chaotic hues unique to the void. The miniature Garganta hovered steadily in midair, neither collapsing nor dissipating.
The laboratory grew so quiet that one could hear a heartbeat.
Aizen stood rooted to the spot, motionless. He stared at the rift, his pupils dilating slightly.
Ren had actually opened a Garganta. Though small in scale and visibly tenuous, it was, without a doubt, a genuine Garganta.
Sensing the fluctuations of space, Ren reined in his spiritual pressure and closed the rift. The spiritual pressure dispersed, leaving only a faint residual hum in the air. Ren deactivated his Hollowification, and the mask dissolved into reishi particles.
"This is the milestone I've achieved so far. It's still somewhat unstable. However, I will deliver a fully viable, complete plan very soon. From here, we just need to keep optimizing the formula and enhance the stability of the spiritual pressure output. That will allow us to open larger, more stable Gargantas."
Aizen remained silent. He stood there, staring at the spot where the Garganta had just vanished, silent for a long time.
In his mind, Aizen was still replaying the scene. Ren had first used a formula to anchor the spatial node, then used his own Hollowified spiritual pressure to tear space apart. Two entirely opposing forces had blended perfectly in his hands, mirroring the perfect coexistence of Soul Reaper and Hollow powers within his body.
Aizen had initially assumed that the core of this breakthrough belonged entirely to Kisuke Urahara, and that Ren was merely painting by numbers. Yet those micro-adjustments, that split-second adaptability, and that precise mastery over spiritual pressure were impossible to achieve without a profound, intrinsic comprehension.
This young man had actually mastered the mysteries of spatial formulas. In that case, Ren was proving to be far more valuable than he had ever anticipated.
Aizen turned around to face Ren. Within those usually gentle eyes, a glint flashed—one that Ren had never seen before.
"You have done exceedingly well." His voice was soft, yet every word carried absolute clarity. "Better than I could have imagined."
Aizen walked back to the laboratory table, picked up the Garganta proposal, and scanned it once more. "You mentioned earlier that there are areas in this plan that still require optimization. What are they?"
Ren considered it. "First is the stability of the spiritual pressure output, which I am still fine-tuning. Second is the size of the Garganta. It will only become a true pathway once it can be expanded enough to accommodate several people passing through simultaneously. Finally, there is the matter of coordinates. Currently, the exit of the Garganta is completely randomized, leaving the destination unpredictable. If we can achieve precise targeting, the Garganta will truly become a strategic asset."
As Aizen listened, the light in his eyes grew increasingly bright. Every single issue Ren raised hit the mark perfectly. He wasn't merely parroting someone else's theories; he was proposing practical directions for optimization based on his own hands-on experience.
"Do you have a strategy for these?"
Ren nodded. "I do, but it will take some time."
Aizen smiled. "Very well." He stepped right up to Ren, gazing intently into his eyes. "Hasumi Ren, you are far more formidable than I imagined."
Ren shook his head slightly. "I am merely doing what I must."
"No, you have achieved what many others simply cannot." Aizen turned around, looking out toward the distance. "Continue to push forward with the Garganta research. If you need anything, come to me at any time."
Ren nodded. "Understood."
He picked up the formula matrix, staring at the spiritual pressure nodes etched upon it.
The Garganta research was merely the first step. Moving forward, he would demonstrate his worth to Aizen step by step. Only by doing so could he get closer to the Hogyoku.
Closing his eyes, he sensed his avatar inside Hueco Mundo. In the white desert, a pitch-black figure was tearing into and devouring the flesh of another Adjuchas. The blood spraying through the air transformed into reishi fragments, which were drawn into its body. It was rapidly ascending toward the absolute peak of the Adjuchas class.
Ren resumed his work, a subtle smile tugging at the corner of his lips. Very soon, it would be ready for use.
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